Latest / Foul Territory / 10 reasons the Rays are AL champs, Richie Palacios on Freddy Peralta & the World Series

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10 reasons the Rays are AL champs, Richie Palacios on Freddy Peralta & the World Series · Foul Territory

• 0:06
  Speaker 1: Time to shake it up. It is presented by Lids.
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: There have been a whole bunch of reviews on how
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: these two teams were put together. Chad Jennings wrote the
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: building the Rays in 10 moves that helped Tampa Bay
• 0:20
  Speaker 1: become the best team in the American League. It's always
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: so fascinating to think about where the Rays are. They
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: won more games than anybody else. Um, they dealt with injuries,
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: but the truth is, you know, the Yankees were without
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: Aaron judge. There were injuries in Boston. The blue Jays
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: completely fell apart relative to last year's world series, uh,
• 0:44
  Speaker 1: This team has been on a roll since Jump Street.
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: They were not picked to finish first, second, third in
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: the division, and they end up now going to the
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: World Series. So if you look at the 10 steps,
• 0:55
  Speaker 1: you know, you get Yandy Diaz back in 18. They
• 0:58
  Speaker 1: trade for Rasmussen, as we just discussed with Jeff. They
• 1:01
  Speaker 1: traded for Caminero. Look, they discovered some pieces of gold.
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: And to Kenny's point earlier, there have been some moves
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: that have backfired on both of these organizations, certainly Tampa
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: Bay as well. But, you know, here are the 10,
• 1:16
  Speaker 1: if you can read them on your screen. they have
• 1:19
  Speaker 1: also dealt with a real problem at shortstop when they
• 1:22
  Speaker 1: thought Wander Franco was the future and they activate Taylor
• 1:26
  Speaker 1: walls in 24, that he's likely to win the gold glove,
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: if not a platinum glove, given the separation he put
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: between himself and every other shortstop. And that's inclusive of
• 1:36
  Speaker 1: Bobby Witt, who always shows up in New York for
• 1:39
  Speaker 1: the gold gloves banquet. So, you know, AJ kind of,
• 1:44
  Speaker 1: joke with me there about me suggesting we're all rooting
• 1:47
  Speaker 1: for the Brewers. Truth be told, I think the Rays
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: win this series.
• 1:51
  Speaker 2: I do.
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: I think the Rays are playing better. They're a better team.
• 1:56
  Speaker 1: I like their first two starters better than either of
• 1:59
  Speaker 1: the first two starters on the Brewers. All of the
• 2:02
  Speaker 1: moves that they've made and all of the levers that
• 2:06
  Speaker 1: Cash is pulling, including moving Chandler Simpson all around the
• 2:11
  Speaker 1: lineup and having him make a massive, I understand Diaz
• 2:17
  Speaker 1: and Freddie and Caminero. Chandler Simpson is as important a
• 2:23
  Speaker 1: guy on this team offensively as there is on this
• 2:27
  Speaker 1: team offensively. So I think the Rays, to me, would
• 2:31
  Speaker 1: win this thing in seven. And I think we have
• 2:34
  Speaker 1: as good a series as we did last year. And AJ,
• 2:37
  Speaker 1: that was as good a series as I can remember
• 2:39
  Speaker 1: in a long time between LA and Toronto. What do
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: you think?
• 2:45
  Speaker 3: Yeah, I think it's going to be great. I mean,
• 2:46
  Speaker 3: I picked the Brewers to win the World Series when
• 2:48
  Speaker 3: the playoffs started, so I still think they win. But
• 2:50
  Speaker 3: I think this is an awesome matchup. And the biggest thing,
• 2:53
  Speaker 3: if we can show that graphic again, I don't know
• 2:55
  Speaker 3: if we can show the 10 steps. The one for me,
• 2:58
  Speaker 3: like they always seem to win trades. I know they
• 3:00
  Speaker 3: don't always win them, but they always seem to win them.
• 3:02
  Speaker 3: Find an ace. They have Rasmussen. They went out and
• 3:04
  Speaker 3: got Freddy Peralta. They've always had pitching in Tampa, right?
• 3:07
  Speaker 3: They've always had patience. They always get help from the draft.
• 3:11
  Speaker 3: They always have depth because they call guys up. They
• 3:13
  Speaker 3: always try to thread the needle. Now they have new owners,
• 3:15
  Speaker 3: a new stadium. Maybe that won't. They patch holes with
• 3:18
  Speaker 3: different people that people don't like. Acted like a contender.
• 3:21
  Speaker 3: These are all things the Rays have done in the past.
• 3:23
  Speaker 3: The one thing, in 2008 they had this. They had
• 3:25
  Speaker 3: Evan Longoria. He was a superstar, okay? They found Junior Caminero.
• 3:29
  Speaker 3: And I had this talk with Hein Blum in Houston
• 3:32
  Speaker 3: after they lost in Game 5 to the Astros. I
• 3:34
  Speaker 3: think it was 2017. And I said, he goes, why
• 3:37
  Speaker 3: can't we get over the hump? And I said, Haim,
• 3:38
  Speaker 3: because y'all don't have a superstar. And he actually said
• 3:41
  Speaker 3: we have one coming. It was Wander Franco. We all
• 3:43
  Speaker 3: know what happened to him. He's no longer in baseball, right?
• 3:46
  Speaker 3: Now they have Junior Caminero to me who is an
• 3:48
  Speaker 3: actual superstar. What they've done is they've found the superstar.
• 3:52
  Speaker 3: And in the postseason, superstars play. Jackson Churrio plays. Bryce
• 3:57
  Speaker 3: Terang plays. Junior Caminero plays. These guys are stars. And
• 4:01
  Speaker 3: look at the other teams. For the Dodgers, Shohei, Freddie, Mookie,
• 4:05
  Speaker 3: those guys play. You know, that's the thing with the Guardians. Yes,
• 4:08
  Speaker 3: Jose Ramirez is their superstar. He didn't have the best year.
• 4:12
  Speaker 3: You need the biggest players to step up in the
• 4:14
  Speaker 3: biggest moments. Bryce Harper's done it for years. Look at
• 4:17
  Speaker 3: teams that have won. They're big players that get big hits.
• 4:20
  Speaker 3: And now the Rays have that player, and his name
• 4:22
  Speaker 3: is Junior Caminero. And I think that's the biggest thing
• 4:24
  Speaker 3: that they found.
• 4:25
  Speaker 1: Yeah, they have it. The question's going to be, because
• 4:28
  Speaker 1: they've been the Rays, can they keep Junior Caminero? I
• 4:32
  Speaker 1: think we sometimes are a little dismissive of Christian Jelic. Jelic,
• 4:35
  Speaker 1: for a time, was a star in baseball. He was
• 4:38
  Speaker 1: an absolute star in the game, and he still hits
• 4:41
  Speaker 1: in the middle of that lineup. The question I'd have about,
• 4:44
  Speaker 1: or the comment you'd have about the Rays, Kratz, you
• 4:47
  Speaker 1: remember this team was bought last September. The new ownership
• 4:52
  Speaker 1: group shows up in September, unable to impact the team
• 4:56
  Speaker 1: in any way last year. This is a team now
• 4:59
  Speaker 1: that has an owner who is a billionaire. That's different
• 5:03
  Speaker 1: than what they've had in the past. I do wonder
• 5:06
  Speaker 1: if there is going to be an influx of dollars
• 5:09
  Speaker 1: or a willingness to perhaps keep guys like Caminero long-term.
• 5:14
  Speaker 1: that in the years past, when they've had a potential superstar,
• 5:18
  Speaker 1: they've moved on from him. And then they've done really
• 5:21
  Speaker 1: well in replacing the superstar with two guys that blossom,
• 5:26
  Speaker 1: and then they move on from those guys. But now
• 5:29
  Speaker 1: you do have to wonder, does the dynamic change in
• 5:32
  Speaker 1: a division... that requires you to spend money generally to
• 5:37
  Speaker 1: get the superstar and to keep him. I think it's
• 5:42
  Speaker 1: a real interesting under-the-radar aspect of the Rays moving forward.
• 5:46
  Speaker 1: They're no longer owned by Stuart Sternberg. They have a
• 5:49
  Speaker 1: brand-new ballpark in 2009 and an ownership group that's got money.
• 5:54
  Speaker 4: That's the part.
• 5:55
  Speaker 5: I don't know about, like, are things going to change.
• 5:58
  Speaker 5: To me, the brand-new ballpark, I think, will precipitate change,
• 6:02
  Speaker 5: dictate change. You see the athletics saying, okay, we're going
• 6:08
  Speaker 5: to spend moving into the new stadium. The Rays want
• 6:12
  Speaker 5: to be successful when they move into the new stadium.
• 6:15
  Speaker 5: I think the location of the stadium is going to
• 6:19
  Speaker 5: bring fans in. I think ultimately when we talk about
• 6:24
  Speaker 5: success in this organization, it comes down to some people
• 6:28
  Speaker 5: can look at it as, well, they don't have any
• 6:29
  Speaker 5: pressure to succeed. When they didn't make the playoffs last year, eh,
• 6:35
  Speaker 5: you know what, it just didn't matter. The pressure to
• 6:38
  Speaker 5: succeed or the desire to succeed are very similar. The
• 6:45
  Speaker 5: difference is I think the Rays have the ability in
• 6:49
  Speaker 5: each of these steps. They found a superstar. Well, where
• 6:53
  Speaker 5: did they find Junior Caminero? They found him after one
• 6:56
  Speaker 5: year in the Dominican Summer League. Like, are you willing
• 7:00
  Speaker 5: to make that move? Are you willing to have people
• 7:03
  Speaker 5: in position as an organization to value a guy that
• 7:07
  Speaker 5: hit nine home runs at the complex down in the DR? Like,
• 7:13
  Speaker 5: that's a move. The patience with Jonathan Aranda, who's now
• 7:19
  Speaker 5: an all-star and he gives protection in front of Cameron Arrow.
• 7:28
  Speaker 5: You have trades. How many organizations would say we'd love
• 7:33
  Speaker 5: to have a gold glove shortstop?
• 7:35
  Speaker 2: Every one of them.
• 7:36
  Speaker 5: How many organizations would say we're going to be willing
• 7:39
  Speaker 5: to have Taylor Walls as our shortstop who had a,
• 7:43
  Speaker 5: I think, 600 OPS? Some teams will say it, but
• 7:47
  Speaker 5: this is where the analytics get in the way sometimes.
• 7:50
  Speaker 5: They say, yeah, but his war is only going to
• 7:52
  Speaker 5: be this. His value is only going to be this.
• 7:54
  Speaker 5: I know we would love that, but could he hit
• 7:57
  Speaker 5: a few home runs? I'm not sure what Taylor Walls,
• 8:01
  Speaker 5: how many home runs Taylor Walls had. It might have
• 8:03
  Speaker 5: been four. Are you willing to do that? I feel
• 8:07
  Speaker 5: like the Rays are willing to make that decision. Where
• 8:10
  Speaker 5: they have to get more offense, they have to get
• 8:12
  Speaker 5: it from the catching position. They weren't getting it from
• 8:14
  Speaker 5: Nick Fortes. So they went out and got Liam Hicks,
• 8:17
  Speaker 5: who is one of the guys in the big leagues
• 8:20
  Speaker 5: that walks more than he strikes out. So those are
• 8:23
  Speaker 5: decisions that I think the Rays can make that I
• 8:26
  Speaker 5: think other organizations are afraid of making.
• 8:29
  Speaker 1: Yeah, well, it's turned out great, and he has certainly
• 8:32
  Speaker 1: saved a hell of a lot more runs than he
• 8:35
  Speaker 1: has not necessarily hit over the wall, but he's saved
• 8:37
  Speaker 1: him defensively. Shake It Up, presented by Lids, your home
• 8:40
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• 8:44
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• 8:49
  Speaker 1: data rates, and exclusions apply. When we come back, Richie Palacios,
• 8:53
  Speaker 1: the Rays' second baseman, as he gets set to go
• 8:55
  Speaker 1: to the World Series.
• 8:57
  Speaker 6: AJ, in this postseason, There is a chance for a
• 9:01
  Speaker 6: fan base to get very excited to witness either their
• 9:04
  Speaker 6: first ever World Series title or a World Series title
• 9:07
  Speaker 6: that hasn't been in a long time. So if you're
• 9:10
  Speaker 6: a fan out there and you're going, man, some things
• 9:13
  Speaker 6: never change. No, in baseball, it can turn around. But
• 9:16
  Speaker 6: here's what really doesn't change. Mint Mobile, $ 15 a month
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• 9:33
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• 9:57
  Speaker 1: It is time now to welcome in our ALCS second-base champion.
• 10:01
  Speaker 1: Look at him with a big smile on his face.
• 10:03
  Speaker 1: That is Richie Palacios joining us here on Foul Territory.
• 10:06
  Speaker 1: I love the style of play, but I'm curious. Give
• 10:10
  Speaker 1: me a rundown of the last 18 hours of your life, Richie.
• 10:15
  Speaker 2: Thanks for having me, guys. It's been amazing to be
• 10:18
  Speaker 2: able to go out there and produce for the boys.
• 10:20
  Speaker 2: You know, our job was to try and get a
• 10:22
  Speaker 2: World Series. So, you know, to be able to play
• 10:24
  Speaker 2: in this World Series is exciting, and we got more
• 10:26
  Speaker 2: work to do.
• 10:28
  Speaker 1: Will you... This is a hard one, but... The expectations
• 10:32
  Speaker 1: going into the season for the players inside the clubhouse
• 10:35
  Speaker 1: are different than those that procrastinate, watch, write about. When
• 10:40
  Speaker 1: did you, during the course of the year, start to
• 10:44
  Speaker 1: believe that this team was capable of the same things
• 10:47
  Speaker 1: you talk about every spring? We want to get to
• 10:49
  Speaker 1: the World Series. You've been around baseball enough. You grew
• 10:53
  Speaker 1: up in New York. You've seen Yankees championship teams. You
• 10:57
  Speaker 1: know that when certain teams go into a season... When
• 11:00
  Speaker 1: they say we hope to win, you know that they
• 11:03
  Speaker 1: believe it. Now, you may have believed it, but when
• 11:06
  Speaker 1: did you really start to feel like we can be
• 11:08
  Speaker 1: the best team in Major League Baseball?
• 11:12
  Speaker 2: I just think throughout the year when we have so
• 11:14
  Speaker 2: many like runs of playing just elite baseball consistently, we
• 11:18
  Speaker 2: started to see like, damn, like we have what it takes. Obviously,
• 11:21
  Speaker 2: it's not just focusing on the World Series. You're just
• 11:23
  Speaker 2: focusing on the season. Want to get in the playoffs
• 11:25
  Speaker 2: first and get hot in the playoffs.
• 11:27
  Speaker 4: We've been able to do that.
• 11:31
  Speaker 1: Well, you've done that. Tell me about the addition of
• 11:34
  Speaker 1: Freddy Peralta and what it's like to play behind him
• 11:37
  Speaker 1: when he's pitching the way he did. Because the one
• 11:39
  Speaker 1: thing I've seemed to notice, I'm sure his confidence is
• 11:43
  Speaker 1: off the charts. Like he's a big dude. His chest
• 11:45
  Speaker 1: seems even more puffed out than usual when he's on
• 11:48
  Speaker 1: the mound.
• 11:49
  Speaker 2: Yeah, man, the energy he brings. I love being on
• 11:52
  Speaker 2: the field with him, just him on this team. The
• 11:55
  Speaker 2: love that he has for the game, the compassion and
• 11:58
  Speaker 2: the confidence he has because he knows he's a good pitcher.
• 12:00
  Speaker 2: We know he's a good pitcher. So when he's out there, man,
• 12:03
  Speaker 2: it's amazing. Uh, we love him and we love the
• 12:05
  Speaker 2: energy he brings and he's going to continue to do that.
• 12:08
  Speaker 5: One of the narratives is, Oh, we love how this
• 12:10
  Speaker 5: team plays the game, how they play ball. Do you
• 12:14
  Speaker 5: guys feel like you play the game a certain way?
• 12:16
  Speaker 5: Do you guys just feel like you're really good at baseball?
• 12:20
  Speaker 2: Uh, I think we play the game the right way. Um,
• 12:23
  Speaker 2: We just do whatever it takes to win. There's no
• 12:25
  Speaker 2: egos in this locker room. If guys got a bunt over,
• 12:28
  Speaker 2: we don't care. Like we just want to win. There's
• 12:30
  Speaker 2: no egos attached to us. And it's amazing to be
• 12:32
  Speaker 2: on a team like this, man.
• 12:33
  Speaker 4: I love it. And I want to be on a
• 12:34
  Speaker 4: team like this for the rest of my life, man.
• 12:38
  Speaker 3: Richie, do you remember, was it you? I think it
• 12:40
  Speaker 3: was you that came up to me and introduced yourself.
• 12:42
  Speaker 3: Wasn't it you or was it your brother? It was you,
• 12:44
  Speaker 3: wasn't it? And I'm like, I know who you are.
• 12:47
  Speaker 3: So don't ever do that again, okay? Because you got
• 12:49
  Speaker 3: that ALCS champion in your name.
• 12:51
  Speaker 1: So you don't need to come up to anybody. If
• 12:53
  Speaker 1: they don't know who you are, you know what? Who cares?
• 12:56
  Speaker 3: Because at least you got a pennant. You got a
• 12:57
  Speaker 3: chance to win a World Series. So please, next time
• 13:00
  Speaker 3: I see you, do not come up and introduce yourself.
• 13:02
  Speaker 1: I know who you are.
• 13:03
  Speaker 3: And if I don't know who you are, you know what?
• 13:04
  Speaker 1: I'll act like I do anyway. You don't need to.
• 13:07
  Speaker 4: Do that anymore. Yeah, I do that too sometimes. I
• 13:08
  Speaker 4: do that too sometimes.
• 13:09
  Speaker 5: Exactly.
• 13:10
  Speaker 4: If somebody you haven't seen in a year is like,
• 13:11
  Speaker 4: do you remember me? You're like, yeah, bro, it was good, man. Yeah,
• 13:14
  Speaker 4: of course.
• 13:15
  Speaker 3: And then I'm like, wait, where's the locker? Which one
• 13:17
  Speaker 3: is it? But anyways, you don't need to do that anymore.
• 13:20
  Speaker 3: What I want to ask you is, did you swing
• 13:22
  Speaker 3: last night?
• 13:24
  Speaker 4: Did I swing?
• 13:25
  Speaker 1: You know what I'm talking about.
• 13:26
  Speaker 3: Did you swing last night?
• 13:29
  Speaker 4: Did I swing last night? I don't know what that
• 13:31
  Speaker 4: reference is.
• 13:32
  Speaker 3: Did you know?
• 13:33
  Speaker 4: I don't know.
• 13:34
  Speaker 2: I mean, Twitter, I've seen Twitter going crazy saying I swung,
• 13:37
  Speaker 2: but I didn't think I swung.
• 13:39
  Speaker 4: Okay. I don't know why they're going so hard. Did
• 13:42
  Speaker 4: you see?
• 13:42
  Speaker 1: I haven't even looked at it.
• 13:43
  Speaker 4: I saw.
• 13:44
  Speaker 5: I don't know.
• 13:45
  Speaker 1: That's why I'm asking you. You had the bat.
• 13:47
  Speaker 4: Did you swing or not? Nah. No swing.
• 13:51
  Speaker 1: Okay.
• 13:52
  Speaker 5: That's fair.
• 13:52
  Speaker 4: That's fair. That's it.
• 13:54
  Speaker 1: Let me ask you this.
• 13:54
  Speaker 4: I do.
• 13:57
  Speaker 1: Richard, let me ask you this question. You go up there.
• 14:00
  Speaker 1: I know the swing that resulted in you ending up
• 14:03
  Speaker 1: on second base and scored a couple of runs. Your
• 14:06
  Speaker 1: numbers against left-handed pitchers weren't great. What is the mindset?
• 14:11
  Speaker 1: Does that ever enter the equation? Because you're hitting, what,
• 14:15
  Speaker 1: sub-160 against lefties. How do you deal with the fact
• 14:20
  Speaker 1: that they've gotten you more than you've gotten them, and
• 14:23
  Speaker 1: yet you're able to come up with one of the
• 14:24
  Speaker 1: biggest hits of the year?
• 14:27
  Speaker 4: You know, the playoffs is different. Numbers go out the window.
• 14:31
  Speaker 2: In the playoffs, I know, AJ, all you guys, Kratz,
• 14:33
  Speaker 2: you know, it's about who's the dog, who's.
• 14:35
  Speaker 4: Confident in what they do. So I'm confident against anybody.
• 14:39
  Speaker 2: I don't look at the numbers. I don't let them
• 14:41
  Speaker 2: sway my thoughts.
• 14:43
  Speaker 4: I know who I am. I know what my belief is,
• 14:45
  Speaker 4: and I've been able to do that recently.
• 14:48
  Speaker 5: Anything change after the first two games? I know you
• 14:50
  Speaker 5: got game two based on, you know, It was Hosey's air.
• 14:56
  Speaker 5: You guys were grinding. But they looked like they were
• 15:00
  Speaker 5: the team that was in control of the series. Did
• 15:02
  Speaker 5: anything change going back to Cleveland?
• 15:06
  Speaker 4: I don't think anything changed for us.
• 15:08
  Speaker 2: I mean, you know, there's times throughout the season where
• 15:11
  Speaker 2: we lost a couple games and just had to figure
• 15:13
  Speaker 2: out how to, you know, keep bringing the energy. We
• 15:15
  Speaker 2: did get to see how they were attacking us. And
• 15:18
  Speaker 2: we had to combat that because they were successful at it.
• 15:21
  Speaker 2: So once we started combating that, we knew that we
• 15:24
  Speaker 2: were going to be able to put on a good
• 15:26
  Speaker 2: show for the boys. So excited to be able to know, like,
• 15:29
  Speaker 2: even if we lose a game or two, it's not
• 15:31
  Speaker 2: a thought of, I don't know, anything we're doing. We
• 15:33
  Speaker 2: just know that we got to lock in on what
• 15:36
  Speaker 2: makes us raise baseball and we've been able to do
• 15:37
  Speaker 2: that so far.
• 15:39
  Speaker 5: Was there a sense of urgency to win game six?
• 15:42
  Speaker 5: In the sense of, like, you knew who was... You
• 15:45
  Speaker 5: knew who was ahead, and some people will be like, well,
• 15:47
  Speaker 5: it's okay. They just got to win one of the
• 15:49
  Speaker 5: next two. They got Gavin Williams. You felt like that
• 15:52
  Speaker 5: night was urgent. Let's win this game tonight and finish it.
• 15:57
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, that's how we've been playing this entire playoff.
• 16:00
  Speaker 2: We play like it's game seven every game. We don't
• 16:02
  Speaker 2: want to let teams breathe. If we feel like we
• 16:05
  Speaker 2: can knock them out, we're going to try to knock
• 16:06
  Speaker 2: them out.
• 16:08
  Speaker 1: Richie, I know and have heard a great deal about
• 16:11
  Speaker 1: Nick Martinez and the role that he's played in sort
• 16:13
  Speaker 1: of bringing this group together. But you can talk about
• 16:17
  Speaker 1: Nick if you'd like. I'd like you to allow our
• 16:21
  Speaker 1: viewers here, pull back the curtain a little bit. What's
• 16:24
  Speaker 1: it like inside? The Rays Clubhouse. What's it like on
• 16:27
  Speaker 1: a Rays flight? Who are the talkers? Who are the leaders?
• 16:31
  Speaker 1: Who are the people that put arms around other people?
• 16:33
  Speaker 1: Who are the guys that make you laugh? What's it
• 16:36
  Speaker 1: like to be wearing a Rays uniform when, in fact,
• 16:39
  Speaker 1: you're not wearing a Rays uniform, if you know what
• 16:41
  Speaker 1: I mean?
• 16:43
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, it just feels like a big family.
• 16:46
  Speaker 2: You know, the flights are fun. We're playing cards, playing dominoes.
• 16:49
  Speaker 2: Me and Freddie are playing against Cammy and Mateo. Domino's
• 16:53
  Speaker 2: table's always high with Latin music screaming. We got Walls
• 16:56
  Speaker 2: talking trash at all times, whenever he can.
• 16:59
  Speaker 1: Is that right?
• 16:59
  Speaker 4: Yeah. Yeah, that's a fact. Nick is our leader, our president.
• 17:03
  Speaker 4: We all listen to him. We love him.
• 17:05
  Speaker 2: And it's just an exciting experience to be able to just,
• 17:08
  Speaker 2: you know, relax and hang out outside the field, go to.
• 17:11
  Speaker 4: Dinners, team dinners, do whatever together.
• 17:13
  Speaker 2: Like the love is, is what, you know, we pride
• 17:16
  Speaker 2: ourselves in and we're going to continue to do that
• 17:17
  Speaker 2: love on each other.
• 17:18
  Speaker 1: It shows.
• 17:20
  Speaker 5: Richie, I was in the, I was with the Rays
• 17:22
  Speaker 5: in 2019 for just like a month. Does Cash, Kevin Cash,
• 17:27
  Speaker 5: your manager, still come back and play cards? Or has
• 17:29
  Speaker 5: he suspended that activity now?
• 17:33
  Speaker 2: No, the coach is playing cards amongst themselves. He just
• 17:36
  Speaker 2: comes back and talks trash to us while we're playing dominoes.
• 17:39
  Speaker 1: Okay, so he still comes back.
• 17:40
  Speaker 5: Because that's, I don't know about AJ, but that was
• 17:42
  Speaker 5: rare for me to see at the end of my career,
• 17:44
  Speaker 5: a manager that would come back and play cards or,
• 17:48
  Speaker 5: like you said, talk smack to dudes. Because sometimes that
• 17:52
  Speaker 5: can get a little contentious. So I was wondering if
• 17:54
  Speaker 5: he still did that or not.
• 17:55
  Speaker 4: Nah, yeah, we love it. And we talk trash back
• 17:57
  Speaker 4: to him. It's a good relationship we all got with him.
• 17:59
  Speaker 2: And, you know, it just sets the precedent of how
• 18:02
  Speaker 2: relaxed the environment is when we're off the field.
• 18:06
  Speaker 1: Give me a little update on the steak or the
• 18:09
  Speaker 1: T-bone or whatever it is you all are eating after. Like,
• 18:12
  Speaker 1: what do they have, a thousand of them just laying
• 18:14
  Speaker 1: around in a big bin? How does that all work?
• 18:17
  Speaker 4: Yeah, I call it the Tommy Yamis.
• 18:20
  Speaker 2: We got about 40 Tommy Yamis waiting for us after
• 18:23
  Speaker 2: we clinch. Yandy's absolutely crushing on them. You've seen videos
• 18:27
  Speaker 2: of that everywhere. I got on the train this time,
• 18:30
  Speaker 2: grabbed me a Tommy Yami, and it was cooked to perfection.
• 18:32
  Speaker 4: Our chefs are the best, man. So we're able to
• 18:35
  Speaker 4: enjoy that.
• 18:36
  Speaker 2: Yeah, we're able to enjoy that with some champagne and
• 18:38
  Speaker 2: some Tommy Yamis, baby.
• 18:40
  Speaker 1: How does Richie Palacios like his Tommy? How do you
• 18:42
  Speaker 1: like your Tommy Yami?
• 18:44
  Speaker 4: Medium. Medium. Medium.
• 18:49
  Speaker 1: It strikes me as interesting that Walls is a trash talker.
• 18:54
  Speaker 1: To me, the trash talkers are the guys that know
• 18:57
  Speaker 1: they're as good an athlete as anybody else out there.
• 19:01
  Speaker 1: You can hit a ball further. I'll beat you in anything.
• 19:04
  Speaker 1: Where does Walls get the bravado beside the fact that
• 19:07
  Speaker 1: he's such an unbelievable fielder? Where does it come from?
• 19:11
  Speaker 4: I mean, I think it's just where you grow up.
• 19:13
  Speaker 2: Like, if you grew up just around that type of
• 19:16
  Speaker 2: environment where.
• 19:17
  Speaker 4: You're just talking trash. I grew up in New York City,
• 19:18
  Speaker 4: so I could talk trash to anybody. If you didn't
• 19:21
  Speaker 4: talk trash, you probably got picked on. So, not yet.
• 19:23
  Speaker 4: Wall's my guy, man. I love when he's talking trash.
• 19:26
  Speaker 2: That's when he's at his best. So, it's a good dude, man.
• 19:29
  Speaker 2: Just enjoying the environment.
• 19:32
  Speaker 1: You made a hell of a play cutting in front
• 19:33
  Speaker 1: of you last night to start the double play.
• 19:35
  Speaker 4: Facts. I don't care. I mean, he's the best in
• 19:37
  Speaker 4: the business, man. If he cuts me off, it's for
• 19:39
  Speaker 4: a great reason, man. He's an awesome athlete. Go for it.
• 19:41
  Speaker 1: That's right.
• 19:44
  Speaker 2: Cratch.
• 19:44
  Speaker 3: It's that time of year where all the sports are
• 19:46
  Speaker 3: pretty much going right now from the baseball playoffs, which
• 19:49
  Speaker 3: obviously on foul territory we love, NCAA football, there's huge
• 19:53
  Speaker 3: games this weekend, conference games, there's NBA starting, NHL is going,
• 19:57
  Speaker 3: and the NFL is in full swing right now. So
• 20:00
  Speaker 3: if I need to get tickets because I go everywhere
• 20:02
  Speaker 3: and I go to a lot of games, I use SeatGeek.
• 20:05
  Speaker 5: I don't need to go everywhere. I just need to
• 20:07
  Speaker 5: go to the World Series. Maybe I got to go
• 20:09
  Speaker 5: see LeBron play too. So I just scroll across. I
• 20:13
  Speaker 5: figure out where the best place to watch the game is.
• 20:16
  Speaker 5: SeatGeek's got me. That's right.
• 20:18
  Speaker 3: Red dot, bad deal, they think. Green dot, great deal.
• 20:21
  Speaker 4: But you get to choose.
• 20:23
  Speaker 3: That's the one great thing about SeatGeek. And, of course,
• 20:26
  Speaker 3: we have a code. Kratz and I have a code
• 20:27
  Speaker 3: for you. You can use code TERRITORY10 for 10% off
• 20:31
  Speaker 3: your next set of tickets at SeatGeek. That's 10% off
• 20:34
  Speaker 3: all tickets with promo code TERRITORY10. Make sure you click
• 20:37
  Speaker 3: the link in the description to download the app and
• 20:40
  Speaker 3: have the code automatically added to your account so you
• 20:42
  Speaker 3: can use it later.
• 20:44
  Speaker 5: How hard was it to come in the other night?
• 20:46
  Speaker 5: I think you came in the 8th or the 9th.
• 20:49
  Speaker 5: And of course, you got to turn that double play.
• 20:52
  Speaker 5: How hard is that? Just like, yes, you can warm
• 20:56
  Speaker 5: up everything, but you're coming in in a big spot.
• 20:59
  Speaker 5: You've got to get the perfect transfer, and you threw
• 21:01
  Speaker 5: it low. Ronda picked it, but he didn't come up
• 21:03
  Speaker 5: with it for the out. How difficult is that? Because
• 21:06
  Speaker 5: you're like, we're doing everything that we can to win.
• 21:09
  Speaker 5: Now I'm in the game. I definitely haven't been underneath
• 21:12
  Speaker 5: turning double plays here.
• 21:16
  Speaker 4: It's not too difficult.
• 21:17
  Speaker 2: I mean, the work that I put in, the work
• 21:18
  Speaker 2: that we put in before the game, we know that
• 21:20
  Speaker 2: we're ready for those moments. My hand was a little cold,
• 21:23
  Speaker 2: so I spiked one there. But now, yeah, it's not
• 21:25
  Speaker 2: difficult for me. And all those pressure moments, honestly, when
• 21:28
  Speaker 2: I'm on the field, I'm just talking to God. I'm
• 21:30
  Speaker 2: praying and it gives me peace throughout whatever.
• 21:33
  Speaker 4: Situation it is.
• 21:34
  Speaker 2: So for me, I feel really relaxed in those moments,
• 21:37
  Speaker 2: you know, when I'm praying and talking to God.
• 21:39
  Speaker 1: Give me a little reaction from the fan base, your buddies,
• 21:42
  Speaker 1: your family in New York, where the expectation every year
• 21:46
  Speaker 1: is the Yankees are playing for World Series. we're kind
• 21:49
  Speaker 1: of burying the lead here, Richie, you're about to go
• 21:52
  Speaker 1: play for a world series. Like does that, has that
• 21:55
  Speaker 1: sunk in and have you been reminded of how fortunate
• 21:59
  Speaker 1: and how lucky and how great it is by all
• 22:01
  Speaker 1: the people back in New York?
• 22:04
  Speaker 2: Yeah, man, I'm truly grateful to be able to, you know,
• 22:06
  Speaker 2: play in my first world series, be able to have
• 22:08
  Speaker 2: my family watching, my friends watching, but now it hasn't
• 22:11
  Speaker 2: sink in. I mean, I want it to sink in
• 22:13
  Speaker 2: when it's done and we won, then I truly want
• 22:15
  Speaker 2: it to sink in and be able to enjoy that
• 22:17
  Speaker 2: for the rest of my life.
• 22:19
  Speaker 5: All right, the series against the Yankees. Did you play
• 22:23
  Speaker 5: for free that series? Like, were there too many people
• 22:26
  Speaker 5: hitting you up for tickets?
• 22:28
  Speaker 2: Anyone that was a Yankees fan that I know was
• 22:30
  Speaker 2: a Yankees fan, I wasn't responding to their text messages.
• 22:33
  Speaker 4: None of them.
• 22:34
  Speaker 2: And all my boys, my mom, my dad, my brother,
• 22:37
  Speaker 2: my cousin, I locked them in. My uncles locked them in.
• 22:40
  Speaker 2: And my best friends, my three best friends locked them in.
• 22:43
  Speaker 2: And then anybody else that is Yankee fans that I know,
• 22:46
  Speaker 2: all that, I wasn't responding to none of their.
• 22:48
  Speaker 4: Messages until after the season, after the series.
• 22:55
  Speaker 3: Richie, what was cooler for you? Junior Caminero's home run
• 23:00
  Speaker 3: trot or Yandy Diaz saying it's over and then him
• 23:04
  Speaker 3: hitting that absolute laser beam?
• 23:07
  Speaker 1: To left and knowing it was over.
• 23:09
  Speaker 3: Was there pressure on y'all to win last night? Forget
• 23:11
  Speaker 3: Gavin Williams because Yandy said it was over and then
• 23:14
  Speaker 3: y'all had to live up to the hype.
• 23:17
  Speaker 2: Yeah, man, we didn't expect Yanni to say that, but
• 23:19
  Speaker 2: that's the confidence that he has in us as a team.
• 23:23
  Speaker 2: We don't like to talk a lot of trash. We
• 23:25
  Speaker 2: know our team. We're just humble guys that just want
• 23:27
  Speaker 2: to go out there and play. But, yeah, we just
• 23:30
  Speaker 2: want to get that done in game six. I don't
• 23:33
  Speaker 2: know what was cooler, man. Those are sick moments. Those
• 23:36
  Speaker 2: are legacy moments from those two. They deserve that, man.
• 23:39
  Speaker 2: It was also special to do it against their former team.
• 23:42
  Speaker 2: So it was truly amazing to see my boys get
• 23:44
  Speaker 2: lit like that.
• 23:46
  Speaker 1: Hey, Richie, last one for me, because both of these
• 23:48
  Speaker 1: teams have some incredible stories of perseverance, et cetera. You
• 23:52
  Speaker 1: were DFA back in 23. The Kambuza story is remarkable.
• 23:57
  Speaker 1: Rasmussen overcoming a variety of injuries. And here you are.
• 24:01
  Speaker 1: You want to share a little bit about self-belief and
• 24:04
  Speaker 1: not getting down and overcoming, et cetera, because there's a
• 24:08
  Speaker 1: lot of these common threads that run through both teams
• 24:12
  Speaker 1: that have allowed you guys to be on the doorstep
• 24:14
  Speaker 1: of a World Series championship?
• 24:17
  Speaker 4: Yeah, man, the stories that we have are unbelievable.
• 24:20
  Speaker 2: I mean, it's a lot of guys that, you know,
• 24:21
  Speaker 2: were told that they're not good enough, told they're not
• 24:24
  Speaker 2: strong enough, told that they'll never be something, told that
• 24:28
  Speaker 2: they're just not good enough. And, you know, I felt that.
• 24:31
  Speaker 2: I remember the day that I got DFA, I remember
• 24:33
  Speaker 2: sitting on the toilet thinking about, okay, like, where do
• 24:36
  Speaker 2: I take this? Am I going to take this as
• 24:38
  Speaker 2: you know, oh, man, my belief in myself, oh, I'm
• 24:41
  Speaker 2: not good enough. They just thought I wasn't good enough.
• 24:43
  Speaker 2: You know, that team thought that I wasn't valuable to them.
• 24:46
  Speaker 2: So I'm going to just focus on what I can
• 24:47
  Speaker 2: do in my life to be able to combat that.
• 24:50
  Speaker 2: And we got a lot of guys in this clubhouse
• 24:52
  Speaker 2: that got stories like that, and we share that. We
• 24:55
  Speaker 2: share that emotional connection, you know, just knowing that there's
• 24:58
  Speaker 2: going to be doubters out there, but, you know, the
• 25:00
  Speaker 2: belief in ourselves is more important than anything that anyone
• 25:02
  Speaker 2: can say about us.
• 25:04
  Speaker 5: One of the stories we talked about yesterday was– Chad Mottola,
• 25:09
  Speaker 5: my teammate, one of the guys that kind of taught
• 25:11
  Speaker 5: me how to do things when I was in AAA.
• 25:14
  Speaker 5: He still looks the same. He's just gray and still
• 25:17
  Speaker 5: really ugly. But what does it mean to have a
• 25:21
  Speaker 5: hitting coach? And I know you haven't been there for
• 25:23
  Speaker 5: all 11 seasons that he's been there as a hitting coach.
• 25:26
  Speaker 5: But what does it mean to have a hitting coach
• 25:27
  Speaker 5: that is a consistent figure in that locker room or
• 25:32
  Speaker 5: coaching staff?
• 25:34
  Speaker 2: Yeah, it's amazing to be able to have one guy
• 25:37
  Speaker 2: that we can all lean on, know that he's going
• 25:40
  Speaker 2: to sway our approaches as a team together. He's going
• 25:43
  Speaker 2: to break down all the arms of whoever we're playing.
• 25:47
  Speaker 2: He knows exactly how they're going to attack us, and
• 25:50
  Speaker 2: he knows how we're going to combat that. So to
• 25:52
  Speaker 2: have a consistent pill like that, it's truly important that
• 25:55
  Speaker 2: we're not having to switch team approaches year by year. Rather,
• 25:59
  Speaker 2: we're just locking in on what we can do to
• 26:01
  Speaker 2: be successful.
• 26:03
  Speaker 1: Tougher guy to face if you had to face one,
• 26:05
  Speaker 1: Rasmussen or Peralta right now?
• 26:10
  Speaker 2: I mean, right now I don't face any of them.
• 26:12
  Speaker 2: To be honest, the boys are rolling, man. I hope
• 26:15
  Speaker 2: they keep doing it.
• 26:17
  Speaker 1: They're doing great. And so are you. Congratulations on all
• 26:20
  Speaker 1: the success, man. It's been a pleasure to have you
• 26:22
  Speaker 1: on here, and we wish you nothing but the best.
• 26:24
  Speaker 1: That's Richie Palacios. We'll see you next week. During the
• 26:27
  Speaker 1: World Series, it starts, of course, on Friday. And as
• 26:29
  Speaker 1: we said earlier, folks, if you want some new postseason merchandise,
• 26:33
  Speaker 1: it is available. Head to FoulTerritoryShop.com for new merch all
• 26:38
  Speaker 1: World Series long.